Climate Defiance (2024)

Climate Defiance is a climate activist group founded in March 2023 focused on young adults. The group engages in direct disruption such as strikes, blockades, and mass occupations to gain media and public attention. In the initial three months since its creation, Climate Defiance has organized several disruptive protests, all opposing fossil fuel drilling on public lands. 1

A large amount of its funding comes from Climate Emergency Fund, an organization that funnels money from wealthy liberals such as Abigail Disney and oil heiress Aileen Getty’s Aileen Getty Foundation 2 to environmentalist activist groups, including Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebellion, and Just Stop Oil. 3

Background

Climate Defiance was founded in early 2023 by activists Michael Greenberg and Rylee Haught shortly after the Biden administration approved certain new oil drilling projects. 4 The group leverages disruptive tactics to protest oil and gas drilling and end leasing for drilling on public lands. They choose events that will have high media attendance to help spread their message. 5

The pledge form to join the movement asks whether a prospective protester would be willing to risk arrest for participating in Climate Defiance activities. 6

Actions

Climate Defiance’s first protest took place on April 29, 2023, six days after the Alaska Willow Project, the largest oil drilling project on public land, was approved by the Biden White House. Protestors created a blockade to prevent elected officials from attending the White House Correspondents’ Dinner at the Washington Hilton, hoping to see President Joe Biden and demand an end to leasing public lands for fossil fuel projects. Climate Defiance was joined by climate activist groups Third Act, Sunrise Movement, and Scientist Rebellion, a sister organization to Extinction Rebellion. Tennessee state Representatives Justin Jones (D) and Justin Pearson (D) expressed their support at the event. 7 In preparation for the protest, Climate Defiance posted on its website that it would have a “legal training” available for anyone interested in taking “arrestable action” and that they were raising money for possible bail situations. 8

On May 10, 2023, climate activists gathered with Climate Defiance at New York’s Fifth Avenue outside a fundraiser for President Biden. Members of New York Communities for Change (NYCC) and Sunrise Movement, as well as disbarred environmentalist attorney Steven Donziger and actress and activist Jane Fonda participated. Fonda spoke at the gathering, indicating, “Now is the time for civil disobedience.” 9

On May 11, 2023, activists from Climate Defiance disrupted Senator Amy Klobuchar’s (D-MN) book launch event at George Washington University demanding an end to conventional fuel use. Sen. Klobuchar left the stage, and the protestors were eventually escorted out. 10

On May 30, 2023, activists from Climate Defiance blocked traffic and protested outside the home of Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in New York City in response to the approval of the West Virginia Mountain Valley Pipeline in debt-ceiling legislation. 11 On the same day, Climate Defiance activists “majorly disrupted” a Third Annual Sustainability Week event with speaker Heather Boushey, 12 a member of President Biden’s Council of Economic Advisers. 13

On June 6, 2023, a summit on permitting reform hosted by Semafor was disrupted as Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) started to speak. Climate Defiance activists went up on stage chanting and yelling, protesting the Mountain Valley Pipeline gas project, and not allowing Manchin to continue with his speech. Manchin eventually left the stage. 14

On June 8, 2023, Climate Defiance and other climate activists converged on the White House to protest wildfire smoke throughout the northeast, claiming it was due to conventional-fuel projects such as the Mountain Valley Pipeline. 15 U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) participated in the protests. 16

On June 19, 2023, members of Climate Defiance demonstrated inside the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham, Michigan where Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was set to give a keynote address during a Detroit Free Press“Breakfast Club” forum event. The group had previously announced on their website it would attempt to disrupt the event as they claimed Granholm had endorsed the Mountain Valley Pipeline and signed off on the Alaska LNG Project. 17 18 Several protesters were removed from the property while chanting, “”No MVP. No LNG. Granholm, you are killing me,” as well as one shouting, “F*** you, Jennifer. F*** you, Joe Biden. F*** all these politicians.” 19 Granholm gave reference to the protesters when speaking at the event, stating that, “I would be out there marching with them in terms of ‘We’ve got to do this. We’ve got to do this…on the other hand, you cannot just flip a switch because we have whole economies that have been built up around using fossil fuels. And so the question is, what does that transition look like?” 20

On August 21, 2023, members of Climate Defiance interrupted and attempted to shut down a fundraising event for Massachusetts governor Maura Healey on Nantucket Island. On their X page (formerly twitter), the group posted, “Big update: We just swarmed a major fundraiser on Nantucket Island benefitting Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey. We demanded she ban new fossil fuel projects. She refused. So we shut down her whole event. She fled. Respect us or expect us.” 21

Funding

A major part of Climate Defiance’s funding comes from Climate Emergency Fund (CEF), a nonprofit organization that channels money to groups engaged in climate activism. CEF also funds Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebellion, New York Communities for Change (NYCC), and Just Stop Oil. 22 Donors to Climate Emergency Fund include former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Onward Together, liberal activist Abigail Disney, and oil heiress Aileen Getty’s Aileen Getty Foundation. Getty also sits on the CEF board. 23

The Climate Defiance donation form and pledge form are published and managed by the Action Network, 24 an open platform for left-of-center organizations that have included the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Women’s March, to recruit, fundraise, and circulate petitions “for progressive causes.” 25

Leadership

Co-founder Michael Greenberg graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor’s degree. He has held several jobs in activist organizations, including an internship with Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN), a fellowship with 350.org, an internship with Food and Water Watch, and a position as regional organizing director with NextGen America. Greenberg founded XL Dissent, a youth movement against the Keystone XL pipeline project. He organized a protest march followed by a civil disobedience protest at the White House fence, during which 398 activists were arrested. 26

Co-founder Rylee Haught is recruitment lead for Climate Defiance. Previously she was national organizing manager for UnPAC, 27 a political action committee that recruits and works with young adults to become activists for left-wing causes. 28

References

1. Climate Defiance website. Accessed June 11, 2023. https://www.climatedefiance.org/
2. Nick Pope. “Climate Activists Funded By Oil Heiress, Wealthy Elites Willing to ‘Risk Arrest’ In Planned White House Protest.” Daily Caller. June 6, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://dailycaller.com/2023/06/06/climate-activists-plan-converge-white-house-arrest-climate-clinton-defiance-emergency-fund/
3. Deja Curtis. “Young Climate Activists Lead Blockade at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Sierra. May 1, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/young-climate-activists-lead-blockade-white-house-correspondents-dinner
4. Deja Curtis. “Young Climate Activists Lead Blockade at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Sierra. May 1, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/young-climate-activists-lead-blockade-white-house-correspondents-dinner
5. Ruby Kotok. “Alumnus takes direct action for the environment.” The Lion’s Tale. April 20, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://lionstale.org/11938/features/alumnus-takes-direct-action-for-the-environment/
6. “Pledge of Resistance.” Climate Defiance. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.climatedefiance.org/
7. Deja Curtis. “Young Climate Activists Lead Blockade at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Sierra. May 1, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/young-climate-activists-lead-blockade-white-house-correspondents-dinner
8. Adam Sabes. “Climate activists plan to ‘blockade’ White House Correspondents Dinner, accuse Biden of ‘ecocide’.” Fox News. April 29, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/climate-activists-plan-blockade-white-house-correspondents-dinner-accuse-biden-ecocide
9. Olivia Rosane. “’We Have to Up the Ante’: Climate Activists Target $25,000-Per-Plate Biden Fundraiser.” Common Dreams. May 11, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.commondreams.org/news/climate-activists-target-25000-per-plate-biden-fundraiser
10. Alexa Schwerha. “Climate Activists Heckle Amy Klobuchar Off Stage At Campus Event.” Daily Caller. May 12, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://dailycaller.com/2023/05/12/climate-activists-heckle-amy-klobuchar-off-stage-at-campus-event/
11. Ramsey Touchberry. “Climate activists target Schumer, top Biden Energy official over West Virginia pipeline.” The Washington Times. May 30, 2023. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/may/30/mountain-valley-pipeline-backlash-climate-defiance/
12. Twitter – Climate Defiance. May 31, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://twitter.com/ClimateDefiance/status/1663943406098186243
13. “Featured Speakers.” Economist Impact – 3^rd annual Sustainability Week US. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://events.economist.com/sustainability-week-usa/
14. Julia Conley. “Pipeline Opponents Disrupt Semafor Conference as Manchin Takes Stage.” Common Dreams. June 6, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.commondreams.org/news/protesters-semafor-manchin-mvp
15. Twitter – Climate Defiance. June 8, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://twitter.com/ClimateDefiance/status/1666846529343172644
16. Ellie Silverman. “Climate advocates protest Mountain Valley Pipeline outside White House.” The Washington Post. June 8, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/06/08/mountain-valley-pipeline-protest-white-house-debt-ceiling-appalachia/
17. “Blockade Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.” Action Network. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://actionnetwork.org/events/blockade-energy-secretary-jennifer-granholm?source=direct_link&
18. Johnson, Julia. “Climate activists thrown out of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaking event.” Washington Examiner, June 19, 2023. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/climate-activists-thrown-out-of-energy-secretary-jennifer-granholm-speaking-event/ar-AA1cKYPA
19. Johnson, Julia. “Climate activists thrown out of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaking event.” Washington Examiner, June 19, 2023. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/climate-activists-thrown-out-of-energy-secretary-jennifer-granholm-speaking-event/ar-AA1cKYPA
20. Johnson, Julia. “Climate activists thrown out of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaking event.” Washington Examiner, June 19, 2023. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/climate-activists-thrown-out-of-energy-secretary-jennifer-granholm-speaking-event/ar-AA1cKYPA
21. Climate Defiance (@climatedefiance). “Big update: We just swarmed a major fundraiser on Nantucket Island benefitting Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey. We demanded she ban new fossil fuel projects. She refused. So we shut down her whole event. She fled. Respect us or expect us.” Twitter, August 21, 2023. https://twitter.com/climatedefiance/status/1693744432393113817?s=46
22. Deja Curtis. “Young Climate Activists Lead Blockade at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.” Sierra. May 1, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/young-climate-activists-lead-blockade-white-house-correspondents-dinner
23. Nick Pope. “Climate Activists Funded By Oil Heiress, Wealthy Elites Willing to ‘Risk Arrest’ In Planned White House Protest.” Daily Caller. June 6, 2023. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://dailycaller.com/2023/06/06/climate-activists-plan-converge-white-house-arrest-climate-clinton-defiance-emergency-fund/
24. “Fund Climate Defiance.” Climate Defiance. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.climatedefiance.org/donate
25. Action Network website. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://actionnetwork.org/
26. LinkedIn – Michael Greenberg. Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-greenberg-6766a772/details/experience/
27. “Ryan Haught.” LinkedIn, Accessed June 10, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/rylee-haught-7b96221b3/details/experience/
28. “Home Page.” Un-PAC, Accessed June 10, 2023. https://un-pac.org/